The Koenigsegg One:1's 3D-Printed Variable Turbo Is A Design Masterpiece

3D printing has undergone something of a renaissance in recent years. There are now dozens of consumer-grade printers on the market, extruding ABS plastic and other materials for hobbyists to create small (and usually flimsy) showpieces from CAD files. If you want a more serious example of the power of 3D printing, though, check this out: Koenigsegg printed an entire turbocharger assembly.

Both of the turbochargers at the heart of the "world's first megacar" One:1's 5.0-litre V8 are fully variable, producing just the right amount of boost pressure at any RPM — reducing lag and pressure spikes, and giving the One:1 a relatively flat torque curve from 4000RPM all the way to its 8250RPM redline.

It's the kind of nifty innovation that drives the One:1 to a full 1341hp — or 1000kW, in the new money — and 1371Nm, giving the 1360kg car a one-to-one power-to-weight ratio as its name implies.

I wonder at the utility of mass-producing finicky (and necessarily perfectly balanced) turbocharger parts using 3D printing, but for a super-low-volume vehicle like the One:1 — only seven are planned in total — it makes sense. [/DRIVE]